Penacook man convicted of manslaughter, sentenced to 15 years in prison

A Penacook man was sentenced to prison Friday after pleading guilty to a lesser charge for his role in a Wentworth homicide.

Thomas Corliss, 30, received a 15- to 30-year prison sentence on a charge of manslaughter.

Corliss admitted to beating a friend, Todd Downing, to death in late November. Downing had been found seriously injured at his home at 234 Atwell Hill Road in Wentworth. He later died at the hospital.

Prosecutors said Corliss drove to Downing’s house to pick up his girlfriend, who met him crying in the driveway. Corliss thought she might have been assaulted, so he in turn attacked Downing, they said.

Authorities initially charged Corliss with second-degree murder in Grafton County, but that charge was dropped as part of the plea agreement.

The defense had recommended a judge sentence Corliss to 10 to 20 years in prison, with a chance for parole after five years if Corliss met certain conditions. The judge ultimately sided with the state in sentencing Corliss to a minimum of 15 years.